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Olympics Olympic Helmet Dispute Vladyslav Heraskevych of Ukraine holding his helmet, which features pictures of people killed in the war with Russia. Andrew Milligan / PA Images via Getty Images MILAN — The International Olympic Committee did so much more than disqualify the Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych. It trivialized his sport. It trivialized his very existence. We know this to be true because two officials from the IOC came right out and said so. Heraskevych, who during practice runs in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, had been using a helmet that honors the lives of Ukrainian athletes who have been killed since Russia began its invasion of the country in 2022, had been warned he faced disqualification if he used the apparently offending protective device in actual Olympic competition. As Olympic heats were set to begin Thursday morning, and with Heraskevych refusing to muzzle his “helmet of memory, ” the IOC announced the disqualification. Though IOC President Kirsty Coventry later spoke of having had a hopeful meeting with Heraskevych and his father, the announcement came as no surprise. Heraskevych had never offered any hints he might back off on his position. Neither did the IOC, though Coventry appeared to be in tears after the meeting. But the IOC’s announcement had elements that were frighteningly, sadly tone deaf. IOC communications director Mark Adams, speaking at a news conference in Milan, had things on relatively safe ground when he said: “Athletes are allowed to do interviews, athletes are allowed to express themselves on social media, athletes are allowed to talk in the mixed zone, athletes are allowed to make statements wherever they wish to. ” He added: “We might even say we encourage that. ”  Advertisement But Adams also took the skeleton competition, and Heraskevych’s passion for the sport, and reduced it to nothing more than 60 ticks on a clock. “It’s not about his message, absolutely not about the message that he wanted to give. It’s simply the place, ” Adams said. “We wanted him before and after to express himself but for that one minute, a one-minute competition, we asked him not to make this expression. ” He made the “one minute” remark later in the news conference while answering questions about the details of the dispute. “In this case we even talked about the fact that this athlete could carry that helmet through the mixed zone so it could even get seen, ” Adams said. “It doesn’t get seen in this particular competition. It’s one minute. ” Yes, that’s Heraskevych’s contribution to skeleton racing, his contribution to his country.  One minute. Lest Adams’ remarks be dismissed as awkward phrasing, Coventry said more or less the same thing. After again conveying she is with Heraskevych in spirit — “No one, especially me, is disagreeing with the messaging. The messaging is a powerful message of remembrance, it’s a message of memory, and no one is disagreeing with that” — Coventry trivialized skeleton racing. “The challenge that we are facing, ” Coventry said, speaking from Cortina d’Ampezzo,  “is that we wanted to come up with a solution for just the field of play. I know he’s very quick, so for just two minutes to not wear the helmet on the field of play. ” For the record, Heraskevych’s times in the first four training heats were 56. 47, 56. 58, 56. 40 and 56. 96. He posted the fastest time in the fifth training heat (56. 70), edging Lin Qinwei of China (56. 74) and Seunggi Jung of South Korea (56. 89). Let’s talk about these one-minute runs. Or, to use Coventry’s stopwatch, two minutes. Every one of those one-minute training runs, and certainly every one-minute Olympic heat, are why Heraskevych gets out of bed in the morning. He didn’t travel to Milan for the risotto. He didn’t come here to mill about the mixed zone. He came here to win. Advertisement One minute at a time, skeleton racing is Heraskevych’s passion, his life, and, yes, his country: In 2018, he became the first skeleton racer to represent Ukraine in the Olympics. He returned to the Olympics in 2022. He was one of his country’s flag bearers during the opening ceremony, for the Cortina cluster. One minute of skeleton racing for Heraskevych is the same as 48 minutes on the hardwood for NBA legend Le Bron James. It’s the same as 60 minutes on the ice for Team USA goaltender Jeremy Swayman. It’s the same as nine innings on the ball field for Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine was never an Olympic athlete himself (as opposed to Coventry, a former swimmer who represented Zimbabwe at the 2000 and 2004 Games) but he wrote a post on X that suggests he understands the importance and power of that one minute. “I thank our athlete for his clear stance, ” Zelenskyy wrote. “His helmet, bearing the portraits of fallen Ukrainian athletes, is about honour and remembrance. It is a reminder to the whole world of what Russian aggression is and the cost of fighting for independence. And in this, no rule has been broken. ” Zelenskyy said that 660 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have died defending their country against Russia. “Hundreds of our athletes will never again be able to take part in the Olympic Games or any other international competitions, ” he wrote. Heraskevych’s helmet includes photos of 24 of those athletes. But the IOC didn’t see dead people. It saw a political message. And it cost Vladyslav Heraskevych a chance to compete in his third Olympics and possibly bring home a medal. That’s one way to look at it. But in so many words, Zelenskyy believes Heraskevych won the Olympics. “We are proud of Vladyslav and of what he did, ” Zelenskyy wrote. “Having courage is worth more than any medal. ” Let that sink in for a minute. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle Steve Buckley is a columnist for The Athletic. He was previously a sports columnist for the Boston Herald and The National Sports Daily. Earlier stops include covering baseball for the Hartford Courant, Tacoma News Tribune and Portland (Maine) Press Herald. Follow Steve on Twitter @Buckin Boston